Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
SPY vs VUG: how they differ
SPY and VUG hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and SPY returned more over the year.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust and Vanguard Growth Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, SPY and VUG hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in SPY | Only in VUG |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA CORP 8.08% | NVIDIA Corp 12.63% |
| APPLE INC 7.33% | Apple Inc 11.67% |
| MICROSOFT CORP 5.59% | Microsoft Corp 7.62% |
| AMAZON.COM INC 3.77% | Alphabet Inc 5.76% |
| ALPHABET INC CL A 2.98% | Alphabet Inc 4.54% |
| BROADCOM INC 2.61% | Amazon.com Inc 4.47% |
| ALPHABET INC CL C 2.39% | Broadcom Inc 4.29% |
| META PLATFORMS INC CLASS A 2.16% | Meta Platforms Inc 3.41% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.
| SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | VUG Vanguard Growth Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | State Street | Vanguard |
| What it is | S&P 500 | US growth |
| Total return, 1 year | +17.5% | +12.9% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | 0.0 pts | −4.6 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.03% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 100.0% | 97.4% |
| Holdings | 505 | 147 |
SPY in plain words
SPY is an index equity fund tracking the S&P 500. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +17.5% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 505 positions, with the top ten at 38.2%.
VUG in plain words
VUG is an index equity fund tracking the US growth. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +12.9% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 147 positions, with the top ten at 60.5%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SPY or VUG?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +17.5% and VUG returned +12.9%, so SPY returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, SPY or VUG?
- SPY charges 0.09% a year and VUG charges 0.03%, so VUG is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do SPY and VUG overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 100% of SPY and 97% of VUG by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
Other comparisons
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Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, SPY against VUG, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spy-vs-vug Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources